The Prank
by gonattsaga
Summary: Ron is bored since the twins left. What can he and Harry do to make things around Hogwarts more exciting? no, not that. this is K or at least I think it is... I hope it is! anyway... the slash is only implied and it's harrydraco! Please Read!


The Prank

(harry/draco implied)

Pg – gen/humour

Harry was woken from his daydream , or eveningdream to be perfectly correct, by a load thud, followed by a muffled groan. He started and quickly whipped his head around to see what had caused the noise.

Ron Weasley had banged his head down onto the nearly empty chess board, and then proceeded to groan in complain of the pain from the impact.

"Ron?" Harry asked his best friend cautiously when he failed to pull himself up again.

"Harry…" the redhead wailed in reply, his voice still muffled, "I'm _bored_…"

Harry chuckled to himself, "Ron, if you wanted me to play with you, you could have just asked!"

"No" Ron muttered and sat back up with a sigh, "I'm bored with chess and all… Everything around here's boring since the twins left…"

"Cheers mate…" Harry muttered wryly.

"Well, no offense, mate, but you've been really boring as well these last couple of months or what it is… always staring into space and daydreaming, or whatever it is you do…"

"I do no-!" Harry started to protest, but Ron cut him off with a dismissive wave of his hand and an impatient 'hmph'.

"Harry" he said sternly, "You've been staring into the fireplace for over an hour now…"

Harry snapped his mouth shut and swallowed the objection as he realized that his best friend was quite right, and he ducked his head sheepishly, "Sorry…"

Ron just shook his head and frowned, "I just miss the excitement, you know"

"Well…" said Harry, thinking hard, and nibbling his lower lip while doing so, "Can't we just… I dunno, create some excitement for ourselves then?"

"How?" Ron said with a puzzled frown. Harry shrugged his shoulders.

"What about a prank?"

"Harry…" Ron murmured at length, as a manic grin started growing on his face, "You're brilliant!"

The two boys hurried down to the library before its closing time and then spent a quarter of an hour leafing through potion- and spellbooks. Then Ron gave a triumphant squeal and started bouncing in his seat, waving a certain book excitedly. Harry gave him an amused look before taking the book from him. He quickly scanned the page, then looked up into his friend's expectant face with a somber expression.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! It's perfect! Come on, Harry, admit it!"

"I don't know… Love potions are illegal, remember?"

"I know that, but, look… we can decide ourselves how long 'til it wears off, yeah? So we'll just make it last for a moment, just long enough to cause a scene… there's no harm in that, is there? Come _on_, Harry… _please_?"

Harry bit his lip and gazed at the page again, indecisive. He had to admit, it was tempting. Ron was quite right, it would be perfect.

Slowly, almost reluctantly, Harry nodded his head. Ron gave another squeak of joy, ignorant to the deliberate cough coming from Madame Pince.

"Something tells me that you've got a target in mind as well…" Harry drawled and gave Ron look. Ron grinned and nodded, "Well… Let's hear it then!"

"Malfoy, of course!"

Harry grinned back slowly, "Yeah… Yeah, definitely!" he agreed, "Who're we going to make him fall in love with? McGonagal? Sprout?"

Ron's grin widened when his enthusiasm was mirrored in his friend, but shook his head gently, "Actually… I was thinking… You!"

Harry visibly paled and stared at Ron with wide, disbelieving eyes. Horror evident on his face.

"Wha- no!" he croaked quickly. Ron frowned.

"Why not?"

Harry miserably scanned his brain for an answer and started panicking when he didn't find one.

"Right" Ron said decisively.

"No! Wait…-!"

"No, Harry! If you can't give me a good reason not to, we'll go with my idea! Come on, admit it… it's brilliant! Malfoy proclaiming his undying love for his arch nemesis! It can't get any better!"

Harry was miserable. Ron had a point and he knew it. There was nothing to do about it. Reluctantly he agreed for the second time that night, and for the third time, Ron squealed.

Ten minutes later they were hurrying along a dungeon corridor underneath Harry's invisibility cloak with an armful each of "borrowed" potions ingredients. They stopped when they reached the ground floor, listening for any suspicious sounds.

"You should have brought the map" Ron whispered just behind Harry's ear. Harry shivered then nodded.

"You should have reminded me!" he hissed back, "Where to now?"

"Moaning Myrtle's…"

"Right…"

They resumed their careful walk again. It was quite a task, since they had both grown considerably since first year and now had to stoop low as they walked in order to cover their whole bodies with the cloak, also Ron had to walk right behind Harry, which lead to a rather compromising position under normal circumstances, which Harry tried not to think about at the moment.

When they finally reached the bathroom on third floor, they shed the cloak and straightened up with a simultaneous groan.

Ron set the cauldron up while Harry put on his most dazzling smile and started explaining the situation to a very suspicious Myrtle, completely charming her to fend her off.

The potion didn't take very long to make, and since they were actually motivated, they managed to create a flawless draft. The boys locked eyes and smiled breathlessly at each other. Even Harry was excited again. It was time for the fourth and final step of their plan: Tricking Malfoy into drinking the potion.

"How are we going to do that?" said Ron.

"What" cried Harry, "you haven't thought of that? This was your idea!"

"Well I can't think of everything! So far you've done nothing to help!" Ron protested.

"Alright, alright! Don't get your knickers in a twist…" Harry muttered. Ron growled threatingly, "I know!" Harry yelled suddenly, "Come on…"

Back in under the cloak, Harry lead the way down to the dungeons again, this time to the kitchen. As he stopped outside, and tickled the pear, Ron caught on and smiled.

"Brilliant!" he breathed. Harry grinned as well, and they walked inside. Immediately Dobby came and greeted them, just as excited as always.

Harry quickly explained the scheme for the house elf, who readily agreed to assist by slipping the potion into Malfoy Junior's pumpkin juice at breakfast in the morning.

So, beaming with the great joy of accomplishment, the boys returned to Gryffindor Tower, barely able to restrain themselves from cackling madly on the way.

The next morning, both boys awoke surprisingly early and got out of bed without delay. They showered and got dressed in record time, and nearly ran all the way down to the Great Hall.

Outside of the big doors they paused however, and regained their breaths and composed themselves before going inside, so not to cause suspicion.

When they got to the Gryffindor table, they calmly sat down and tried to act as normal as possible, even though they were both boiling with anticipation in the inside.

Soon enough, the familiar sight of a sneering blonde, known to all of Hogwarts as Draco Malfoy, entered the Great Hall and took a seat at the Slytherin table. He was immediately surrounded by the equally sneering goons of his.

Harry and Ron exchanged a quick look, sparkling with the reflection of the nervous excitement that was fluttering in their guts.

Draco Malfoy extended his hand and grasped the goblet in front of him. Slowly he raised it and put it to his lips which parted delicately. Carefully he tipped the goblet over and…

Harry found himself holding his breath, and suspected that Ron was doing the same next to him.

They saw Malfoy's throat work as he swallowed a mouthful before putting the goblet back down. A faint glow lit in the blonde's eyes briefly. Then he went on with his current conversation with Blaise Zabini.

Harry and Ron frowned and stared intensely at the Slytherin for another moment. Nothing happened.

"It didn't work…" Ron complained in a small voice. He looked crestfallen. Harry felt a sinking sensation in his stomach himself, but then he shook himself and leaned closer to his friend.

"But didn't you see the glow in his eyes? Just like it said in the book…"

"Yeah…" Ron murmured slowly, his eyebrows knitting in thought as he furiously tried to put the facts together, "Yeah, I saw it… so, then it must've worked?"

"Yeah… but-" Harry cur himself off. He too scrunched his brow together and tried to understand what had happened.

They sat like that for a while, occasionally glancing at the still unaffected Slytherin, who glanced back a few times and then proceeded to whisper something to his friends who all burst out laughing every time. No change there.

Harry caught himself staring at the blonde's triumphant, and teasing smirk, while the wheels in his head turned and turned. Then the truth finally hit the two Gryffindors forcefully.

They quickly whipped their heads around and stared at each other with widened eyes alight with realization.

"…Oh"

The End.


End file.
